WELCOME TO MY KITCHEN: Conjure up summer with some southern fare

The time for whining has ended. Last week I sorted through the piles and piles of untested recipes, chose the ones that came from reliable sources and then I started taping those recipes up on my kitchen cupboards for inspiration. Slowly but surely (and tastefully and successfully) I began to cook my way through those recipes.

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Dover Post

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Posted Apr. 28, 2013 at 2:10 PM
Updated Apr 28, 2013 at 2:13 PM

Posted Apr. 28, 2013 at 2:10 PM
Updated Apr 28, 2013 at 2:13 PM

The time for whining has ended. Last week I sorted through the piles and piles of untested recipes, chose the ones that came from reliable sources and then I started taping those recipes up on my kitchen cupboards for inspiration. Slowly but surely (and tastefully and successfully) I began to cook my way through those recipes.

First up was a recipe for Quick Shrimp Chowder from Southern Living magazine (and the Southern Living website – www.myrecipes.com). I keep a bag of frozen shrimp in the freezer for emergency meals and I decided that lunch for Spicer was "an emergency." I placed the shrimp in a colander, rinsed it in cold water to get rid of ice crystals and let the shrimp drain while I prepared the base for this soup. Although the recipe didn't call for it, I added several stalks of very finely minced celery when I sautéed the onion. This does add a little extra flavor and I do recommend that you add this to if you have it.

The Southern Living website, myrecipes.com, was also the source for these tasty Cheesy BBQ Sloppy Joes. The recipe called for this to be served over Texas toast but we found that the toasted English muffins that we already had on hand worked well, too. I adapted this recipe by adding a drained can of corn to the hot meat mixture. I recommend using a top-quality barbecue sauce when you prepare this.

And, of course, grandson Josh is winding down tennis season (four matches this week if there are no rain-outs) and so the third recipe from the back of the Nestle Butterscotch Morsels bag is for the cookies from one of last week's matches. I'd made these years ago and forgotten how good they were. These make big, chewy cookies so do NOT try to squeeze more than 15 (and that's a lot) onto a cookie sheet so that they have room to spread out.

Melt butter in a large pan over medium heat; add onion and celery and sauté for about 8 minutes or until tender. Stir in undiluted soups and milk. Bring just to a boil. Add shrimp; reduce heat and simmer, stirring often, for about 5 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink. Stir in cheese and Old Bay seasoning until cheese is melted. Serves 4 to 6.

Page 2 of 2 - Cheesy BBQ Sloppy Joes

(adapted from Southern Living)

1 to 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 cup ketchup

1/2 cup top quality bottled barbecue sauce

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 (11.25-ounce) package frozen garlic Texas toast

1/2 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Brown ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat, stirring often, for 8 to 10 minutes or until beef crumbles and is no longer pink; drain well if necessary. Return browned beef to skillet. Stir in tomatoes, ketchup, barbecue sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare Texas toast according to package directions. Serve beef mixture over Texas toast and sprinkle with cheese. Serves 4.